Choncept is a biotechnology
company founded on the breakthrough technology of Chief Scientist, Dr.
Paul DeAngelis, Professor at Oklahoma University Health Sciences Center.
Choncept’s scientific innovation is focused on development of
new technology to produce chondroitin from fermentation of recombinant
bacteria to replace the current chondroitin source of beef and other
animal by-products. By utilizing bacteria and not animal sources, Choncept’s
new method avoids the problems of potential prion contamination (“mad
cow”) or harvesting endangered species such as sharks.

Commercial
Applications for High-Yield Markets

Chondroitin produced
by the gene patented by Choncept is unsulfated which can be sulfated
to produce chondroitin similar to that isolated from animal sources.
The unsulfated chondroitin may also be of interest as a biomaterial.
Chondroitin produced recombinantly may be significantly less expensive
to produce than current methods that rely on animal by-products. The
global orthopedic material market is currently more than $4 billion
annually.

Modified chondroitin,
dermatan sulfate, has properties as an anti-coagulant, an important
pharmaceutical market. The anti-coagulation segment of the drug discovery
and development market is estimated at more than $4 billion.

Another emerging
frontier is tissue engineering, specifically prosthetic organs and tissues.
The tissue engineering market is estimated to be more than $15 billion
per year.

Choncept’s
innovation in chondroitin production enables manufacture of chondroitin
which is sold as a nutraceutical dietary supplement. The nutraceutical
market is $60 billion worldwide.

Choncept is seeking
collaborative partners with existing market channels for the distribution
of nutraceutical and medical grade chondroitin sulfate. The company
is also interested in partners for dermatan sulfate development as an
anti-coagulant.